Photo by: Duane Daws
JSE-listed Grindrod has signed an agreement to cooperate with US-based Teras Cargo Transport on US flag shipping services to Southern and Eastern Africa.
Under the terms of the agreement, Grindrod would provide shipping and logistics support to Teras, which focused on the oil and gas industries.
Teras would grow its fleet with additional US multipurpose geared ships, while Grindrod would provide stevedoring and terminal services along with agency services throughout the region.
The companies believed the agreement would contribute to the growth of the oil and gas industry, which would create new jobs and economic benefits in the US, South Africa and other Southern African countries.
A formal recognition of this partnership was signed between Teras CEO Joe Sanders and Grindrod’s Walter Grindrod at a reception hosted by US Ambassador Patrick Gaspard in honour of a trade mission led by US Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx and US Assistant Secretary of Commerce Arun Kumar earlier this week.
The US trade mission to South Africa, Mozambique and Kenya included representatives from 14 US companies and was aligned with US President Barack Obama’s $7-billion ‘Doing Business in Africa’ campaign.
It represented the commitment of the US to connect its companies to opportunities on the African continent, which would lead to business growth for these companies and their local African partners, with overall sustained economic improvement.